For The Most Delicious Phở, Always Use This Cut Of Chicken

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

When I was developing and testing savory recipes for my second cookbook, "Modern Asian Kitchen," I had the best homemade phở gà, or chicken phở, in my auntie Eva's house in San Francisco. I had always thought we Vietnamese made phở gà with only one particular cut of chicken, either dark meat or white meat, so I was surprised to see my aunt use the entire bird to make her phở. 

By using the whole chicken, my aunt maximizes the flavor of the broth while also cooking the meat that serves as the dish's protein, rather than the sliced beef, tripe, and meatballs found in aromatic beef phở recipes. Her homemade phở broth is truly a labor of love. It's rich and aromatic, full of flavor, and umami rendered from the whole chicken as it cooks. The bones give the broth depth of flavor, while the fats, cartilage, and meat bring richness. Every part of the cooked chicken has a purpose. Once her broth is ready, my aunt removes the chicken, lets it cool, then shreds all the white meat from the bones. She then lightly seasons the shredded chicken with sesame oil, soy sauce, salt, and pepper and serves it with the noodles and phở broth. 

Back at home in Seattle, I adapted my aunt's recipe and made some changes. Instead of simmering a whole chicken for hours in a pot, I divided it in half and used an Instant Pot to make the broth. That cut down my cooking time. What did I do with the other half of the chicken, you ask? Well, I roasted it in the oven until the skin was crispy. In addition to using seasoned shredded chicken meat, I served my version of phở gà with roasted chicken.

The resulting dish is my modern, third-culture spin on phở gà, shaping the dish through the way I cook, eat, and live in America. Is my phở gà traditional or authentic? Would you find it in the past or today in a food stall in Hanoi, where Auntie Eva and my father were born? Well, not exactly. But my version of phở gà is honest, deeply flavorful, and true to who I am, and I am happy to share this tip with you. In my kitchen, and in yours, the goal should be as simple as this: to honor where we come from, use every cut of an animal when we can, and make every bite or slurp of food delicious.